meditation Archives - Page 2 of 2 - Singing Dragon and Handspring Blog

Three New Years Greetings from Master Wu

Singing DragonJanuary 20, 2015 0 Comments

Greetings from sunny Stockholm! Unlike the record warm winter we had last year, we are finally experiencing some snow and freezing temperatures this winter. My wife Karin and I are enjoying this winter-Qi – the greatest source for rejuvenating all new life energy. We will continue to take advantage of the winter feeling and maintain our focus on our annual winter personal retreat. I am sending this seasonal greeting a little early this year because I would like to share some special cultivation ideas for the coming new energetic year with you all.

Utilize the rhythm of Nature

According to ZhouYiCanTongQi 周易參同契, one of the most important Daoist internal alchemy classics, the rhythm of nature has great influence on human beings, and it is therefore important to understand the rhythms of nature and know how to cultivate with the changing rhythms.

By doing so, you will optimize your potential for inner transformation and for deep healing to occur.

Three New Years!

There will be three important shifts in the rhythm of Qi as we move from the current JiaWu 甲午 Year to the coming YiWei 乙未 Year:

Cosmological New Year – Alchemical Qi
Animal New Year – Yang (Solar) Qi
Chinese New Year – Yin (Lunar) Qi

Cosmological New Year – Alchemical Qi

This YiWei 乙未 Cosmological Year will start January 20, 2015

The Heavenly Stem Yi 乙 represents Yin Wood and the Earthly Branch Wei 未 represents the Earth and carries the Goat as its spiritual animal. According to Chinese cosmology, I expect that the coming year’s climatic pattern to be influenced by Revenge Fire, Damp Earth, and Cold Water energies.

This means that I predict more rainstorms than average this year, with hail in the summer and snow storms in the winter.

I also expect that there will be strong windstorms in the coming months, especially on west coast area of your region.

Animal New Year – Yang (Solar) Qi

Spring season will begin on February 4, 2015

The next animal sign begins on LiChun 立春, which marks the beginning of spring. LiChun is one of the 24 15-day segments in the annual solar cycle. According to WanNianLi 萬年曆, the Chinese Ten-Thousand Year Calender, spring season will begin on February 4, 2015.

In my tradition, the coming of spring correlates with the start of a new annual animal sign – and this year it will be YiWei, the Year of Yin Wood Goat. In Chinese astrology, one of the four pillars that make up the basic chart is the animal which correlates to the Solar year of birth.

For example, all babies who are born between February 4, 2015-February 4, 2016 will have the Yin Wood Goat as their yearly animal sign.

Whether you have a goat in your chart or not, we will all be affected by the Goat energy this year.

Here is a brief synopsis of the symbolism of the Goat, as extracted from my book The 12 Chinese Animals:

“Goats give you gentle and peaceful feelings when they chew grass with a slow, grinding motion. Yet they move with great speed and agility when navigating their way through rough, rocky, mountainous areas. They have strong horns and are always ready to defeat their enemies.

Goat is the eighth animal symbol in the 12 Chinese Animals System.

We use Wei 未 to represent the Goat symbol in the 12 Earthly Branches.

Wei is a symbol for the 13:00–14:59 time of day, and for the sixth month in the Chinese Lunar-Solar calendar (which is approximately July 7 to August 8 in the Gregorian solar calendar).

Wei represents the napping time of day and the third summer month when nature is in its ripest season. It is a time or a place where Yang energy (life energy) continues its decline and when the life cycle becomes more mellow. We use the tidal hexagram Dun 遁 ䷠ to symbolize the Goat.”

Chinese (Lunar) New Year – Yin (Lunar) Qi

This year we will celebrate the New Year on February 19, 2015

The Chinese New Year falls on the second new moon after the Winter solstice each year. This year we will celebrate the New Year on February 19, 2015. In China, we also call the New Year ChunJie 春節, or Spring Festival.

The Spring Festival is the most important and longest holiday of the year in China, the one in which we all prioritize spending time with family and friends. Traditionally, the celebration begins new year’s eve and lasts for almost an entire month.

YiWei and your Health

While the combination of YiWei energies will be good for those of you who need support from the Wood elements, it will also possibly cause added difficulties for those of you who have weak lung Qi, poor digestive function, and/or a lower sexual drive.

Some people will suffer more pain in their joints and tendons over the next couple of months.

I will go into more detail about how the seasonal cosmological influences will effect us in my coming seasonal greetings.

YiWei New Years Qigong – Goat Internal Alchemy

As I always emphasise, Qigong practice is a great medicine that will help you maintain balance and a sense of well being in your life.

The special Goat internal alchemy qigong form will be a powerful addition to your daily Qigong practice during this YiWei year.

This year, I will teach the entire 12 Chinese Animals Internal Alchemy form in Anchorage, Alaska on Sunday April 19th. In the workshop, I will explain the form in relation to the twelve Tidal Hexagrams – the spirit of Yijing (I Ching), and cover healing and spiritual transformation applications of the form.

For those of you who will be unable to join us in Anchorage, here is one of the Goat internal alchemy practices for you:

Tidal Hexagram Dun ䷠ Meditation

With a lit candle in front of you, start the meditation by straightening your back and feeling that your body is as stable as a mountain.

Make the Dun mudra by placing each thumb on the tip of the ring finger. The tip of the ring finger is related to the hexagram Dun.

With open and relaxed fingers, place your right mudra on your right knee, palm facing up and raise your left mudra to the level of your left shoulder, palm facing forward.

Adjust your breathing to be slow, smooth, deep, and even.

Feel each breath connect with your spleen, heart, and liver.

Meditate in this position for as long as you can.

At the close of your meditation, please cite this little prayer:

May the Spiritual Lights shine on my unwavering mind

May the Spiritual Lights shine on my unbroken breath

May the Spiritual Lights shine on my unpolluted body

Spring Courses in the US!

Below please find a brief summary of my upcoming courses in the US.

Events with a special early registration price are noted.

QiDao ChaDao: Qigong and the Dao of Tea

Qigong is an ancient technique for healing and inner cultivation. For thousands of years, sages have used the tea ceremony as a gateway to understand the Dao. Please join us for a sampling of special Chinese tea and demonstration of traditional Qigong.

Offerings:

March 13 2015 in Baltimore, MD (click for further details)

April 17 2015 in Anchorage, AK (click for further details)

Dragon Body: The Secret of Daoist Internal Alchemy

In Chinese culture, the dragon represents shifting, changing, invisible, mystery, flexibility, transformation, high spirituality, supernatural, and power.

The Dragon Body practice is a way to express all the characteristics of the dragon in your cultivation practice.

This practice strengthens the vital link between the governing meridian and conception meridian and is one of the most important ZhouTian 周天 (Cosmic Orbit) methods to transform your Qi and nourish your spirit.

Offering:

March 14-15, 2015 in Baltimore, MD (click for further details)

*Please take advantage of the discounted early registration price and register before February 6!

Daoist Internal Alchemy – BaGuaXinJing 八卦心鏡

In this BaGua XinJing (Eight Trigrams Heart-Mirror) training, we will review HunYuanZhuang 混元樁, the fundamental Heart-Mind standing posture, and the XinJing – the eight gentle movements designed to increase physical strength, nourish the joints and balance the mind. This practice represents the very foundation of YiJing (I Ching) philosophy.

Offerings:

March 15, 2015 in Baltimore, MD (click for further details)

April 18, 2015 in Anchorage, AK (click for further details)

*Alaskans, please take advantage of the discounted early registration price and register before February 17!

Daoist Internal Alchemy – ShengXiaoGong 生肖功

The twelve rhythms of nature are represented by ShengXiaoGong (Twelve Animals Qigong), from China’s esoteric Mt. EMei shamanic Qigong lineage, and give us access to the deepest spirit of the Yijing (I Ching).

April 19, 2015 in Anchorage, AK (click for further details)

*Alaskans, please take advantage of the discounted early registration price and register before February 17!

Karin and I are wishing you and your families a healthy and happy year of the Goat!

Master Zhongxian Wu

Meditation for midwinter

Singing DragonDecember 19, 2014 0 Comments

by Jennifer Rhind, taken from A Sensory Journey: Meditations on Scent for Wellbeing

It is midwinter. It is cold, water has crystallised into ice, the land has frozen over and the power of the sun has diminished. Nature is dormant – the animals are hibernating, everything has slowed down, conserving energy for future survival.

You are standing at the edge of a forest. It has been snowing; the landscape has been covered with a blanket of snow. Focus on your ears, and sense of hearing. All sound has been deadened – this is as close to silence as you have ever felt.

It is almost sunset. You slowly emerge from the wood and stand at the edge of a wide, sandy bay. The sea is dark blue, reflecting the late afternoon sky, and the wind is capping the waves with white foam. The tide is coming in, and you walk up to the edge of the sea where the waves crash on to the shore. The roaring of the sea as it drags on the sand fills your head.

You breathe deeply, drinking in the salty air, with its tang of seaweed. You become aware of the power of the sea – and feel a strange combination of fear and excitement, an overwhelming exhilaration.

You watch the waves that break on the shore at your feet, and become one with their rhythms and patterns.

Now look to the horizon. The fading sun, now a dull red, is low in the sky, its light turning the sea foam to pink. You notice that some of the waves are becoming larger, rising above the water; these are the mythical white horses. As you watch, you wonder what it would be like to ride the waves.

As the white horses draw closer to the shore, you merge with the illusion, and find yourself riding the waves. The roar of the sea is all encompassing, white foam blows all around, and you are moving with the swell of the ocean, diving into the troughs, and rising over the crests… the experience is exhilarating, natural and flowing. You notice dolphins and porpoises all around, and then you too become a creature of the sea.

Your white horse carries you back to the shore, and you watch as it disappears into the sea foam. You are standing, looking out over the sea, which is now very calm and quiet, little ripples caressing the sand at your feet. The sun is now very low in the sky; you watch the red disc slip over the horizon, its light reflected in the calm water.

Now your senses are anchored. Your experience has allowed you to realise that you have abundant courage, judgement and will. You now turn and head back to the forest. Ahead, the snow brightens the scene, and your pace quickens. You reach the forest and, in the fading light, retrace your tracks back through the trees.

You are heading back to your log cabin, where the fire will be burning. The fragrance of wood smoke lingers in the still air. This is your midwinter haven. As you walk, you reflect and review. This is the season to rest, be still, and listen to the wise person within. You are your own catalyst for growth in the coming spring. Now is the time to plant the seeds of your dreams. It is a time for being, not doing.

Jennifer Peace Rhind is a Chartered Biologist with a Ph.D. in Mycotoxicology. For thirteen years she worked as a therapist and partner in a multidisciplinary complementary healthcare clinic.. She was a lecturer on the B.A. Complementary Healthcare programme at Edinburgh Napier University for fourteen years, and remains involved in scent education. A Sensory Journey is a set of cards and booklet exploring different fragrances and giving guided meditations on scent for wellbeing and spiritual growth.

The Practice of Sitting and Forgetting

Singing DragonSeptember 23, 2014 0 Comments

Discourse on Sitting and Forgetting is an 8th century classic text on meditation by Si Ma Cheng Zhen, in his translation Wu Jyh Cherng deciphers the complex Chinese metaphors to make a practical guide for those looking to deepen their meditation practice. In this extract Cherng looks at what is really meant by “sitting and forgetting” as a definition for meditation.

Zhuāng Zǐ said: ‘Relax one’s body and abandon one’s perspicacity; eliminate one’s norms and let go of one’s intelligence, uniting oneself to the Great Opening. This is called the practice of Sitting and Forgetting.’

Relaxing the body and eliminating the norms is sitting naturally to meditate, without being concerned about norms regarding elegance; abandoning one’s perspicacity and letting go of one’s intelligence is removing oneself from active thoughts during meditation; and the Great Opening is the doorway which is revealed within meditation and which gives access to the Emptiness.

The practitioner should use the time devoted to meditation to relax, rest and recharge his energy. In the period preceding the practice, he relaxes the body and mind and begins the process of systematic forgetting, until forgetting himself. He abandons logical and imaginative reasonings, all memories and wanderings of the mind, worries and frustrations. In this state, he shall be resting as if on holiday, in his room. As all activities are suspended, he also frees himself of the limitations imposed by the norms and constant demands on the use of his intelligence. During meditation he need only give himself up to the naturalness, to be at one with the Great Opening.

Living peacefully in society is based on the use of intelligence, on the norms of a good education and ethical principles of behaviour. A norm is a precept, a standard established as a base for the practice of an action, and intelligence has the meaning of elaborate, intentional thoughts in chains. But, upon meditating, the norms should be eliminated and the use of intelligence removed. While one’s everyday life is conditioned by norms and by the use of intelligence, one needs to reserve the moment of meditation for resting from the rules and from the need to be constantly rationalizing.

When preparing to meditate, the practitioner forgets appearances. He is not worried about his hair, whether it’s nice and tidy or not, or about his beard, whether it’s trimmed or in need of a shave. He is not worried about the spot on his face, or about how his clothes look: whether they are fashionable, attractive or ugly – he is only concerned about the comfort that the clothes need to provide. At that point, he puts himself at ease and gradually ceases to fulfil the norms, in order to fulfil the demands of his body, while seeking the position he considers comfortable, until he attains a state of tranquillity and enters meditation, at which time all the rules and the use of intelligence are forgotten. When alone in the room, with the door closed, sat comfortably to begin the meditation, the practitioner need not follow norms, nor activate his intelligence. Here there is no dispute or discussion; there are no challenges to be answered. Therefore, there is no need to prepare for clashes. The person only needs, at this moment, to let go of rationality and relax the body and mind so as to enter meditation.

If the practitioner is dedicated and disciplined, he will advance, until reaching the state of Primordial Chaos and feel as if a door has opened within him, through which he shall pass to enter the Emptiness. This is the Great Opening, the apex of the Daoist Spiritual Path: the consciousness expands to the infinite, all limits are broken, norms and logical reasonings cease to exist as impositions and all forms, images and languages are forgotten. But the creative potential remains present because the practitioner has not ceased to be conscious, he has simply become serene. And what was manifest has been transformed into potential.

Wu Jyh Cherng (1958-2004), was a Taoist High Priest and Master of Meditation, Rites and Ceremonies. He was ordained as a priest by the World Central Committee of Taoism based in Taiwan and in 1991 he founded the Taoist Society of Brazil. Master Cherng spread the Taoist doctrine of the Orthodox Unitary Order and passed on his knowledge of this Tradition to his disciples and followers.

Improve patient’s experience through relationship-building – interview with Jane Wood

Singing DragonAugust 28, 2014 0 Comments

Jane Wood has been involved in reflective practice for the last 20 years. She is a supervisor and teacher of reflective practice at the University of Westminster and is the head

of practitioner development and reflective practice at the International School of Homeopathy, London.

Jane Wood’s new book The Compassionate Practitioner is now available from Singing Dragon. This handbook, full of practical tips and supportive advice, explains how best to enhance the client’s experience through compassion and mindfulness. This book will be a valued support for anyone working in private practice.

What inspired you to write this book?

I have been teaching the practitioner-patient relationship to students at college and at the University of Westminster for nearly 20 years. At the same time, I have been supervising qualified alternative practitioners and seen their struggles to build up a private practice. Many practitioners talked about the same issues in supervision: their patients were demanding, impatient or simply didn’t return. The practitioners needed to find a way to create trust, loyalty and staying power. They could do this if they improved the patient’s experience during the consultation. I realized I was in a position to write a book that takes the practitioner through every stage of the consultation, giving them lots of practical advice on how to create a healing relationship with the patient – and gain a flourishing practice.

Why is relationship building so important for people working in private practice?

I strongly believe that relationship building is vitally important for everyone in the caring professions whether they are alternative practitioners, counsellors and therapists or traditional doctors, nurses and consultants. Unfortunately, most orthodox practitioners do not have the time available to do much relationship building, leaving both the practitioner and the patient feeling dissatisfied and rushed. Many alternative practitioners such as homeopaths, acupuncturists, and body workers have longer sessions with their patients, which allow them more time to work on the relationship.

On the surface, making an effort to improve the experience for the patient will increase their trust and loyalty to the practitioner, but it is more than this. When the practitioner takes time to make the patient feel safe and appreciated, the patient can start to relax and explain themselves better; which in turn enables the practitioner to give a better treatment.

The added bonus for anyone in private practice, is that once there is a good relationship, the patient will help build up the practice by referring other people.

There are many different ways in which the practitioner can improve their patients’ experiences. One way is consider the clinic environment. I suggest that practitioners take five or ten minutes to sit in the patient’s chair, quieting their mind by focusing on the breath. Once they are quiet and relaxed, they can bring themselves into the present moment and use all of their senses to assess the clinic room. What is the feel of the chair they are sitting in? Is it comfortable? What is the room temperature? What smells are there? Can they hear the receptionist or another therapist working in the next room? If so, does this impact on confidentiality?

What can practitioners do to improve their patients’ experiences?

The appearance of the room will make a big difference to the patient. If the practitioner is behind a desk they will feel more secure, but the patient will feel distanced. What do the patient’s eyes rest on when they are not talking? Considering the clinic room through the senses will give the practitioner a taste of what the patient experiences. They then need to consider what they can do to improve the current environment.

Another suggestion for improving the patient’s experience is that the practitioner should explain to the patient what will happen during the consultation. This is called ‘signposting’ and should be done at the beginning of the session. It can be very brief, such as, ‘I’m going to invite you to talk about yourself and your problem for the first twenty minutes, and then I’ll give you a treatment which takes about thirty minutes. You’ll need to take off your shoes and get onto the treatment couch. After the treatment we’ll see how you feel.” Once this has been clarified, the patient knows what to expect and can relax.

How can practitioners maintain balance in their work and avoid burnout?

Being a practitioner and listening to many patients talking about themselves is a great privilege and helping them can be deeply rewarding. But sometimes the price is too high. There are several different causes of burnout, including working for very long hours, anxiety about patients or unconsciously taking on the patients’ negative emotions. The last one occurs mainly when there is a long time spent face-to-face with the patient, such as for counsellors, therapists or homeopaths. Our brains are programmed to read other people’s body language and facial expressions, so that we can empathise or feel their emotions.

The patient’s emotions can be directly experienced by the practitioner who might carry home a patient’s anger or depression. An awareness of this will help them consciously make more breaks in eye contact, and change their own body language more often so they don’t unconsciously mirror the patient so much.

Another way to avoid burnout is to make sure the practitioner has enough personal time to have fun and relax. This might sound obvious but when a single practitioner is running a private practice, they have to be their own marketing manager, record keeper and accountant and this all takes time. The practitioner needs to balance the intense work in the clinic with care for themselves, physically, mentally and emotionally.

You write a lot about self-reflection. Who do you think should do it and why do think it’s important?

Self-reflection is a process of self-examination, of thinking seriously about your own character or actions. In the caring professions this will mean exploring something about the practitioner-patient relationship in order to understand it in more depth and decide what can be done to improve it. It is not nearly as effective if it is done within the limitations of the practitioners mind, and much better if it’s done out loud in front of a colleague or supervisor, or written into a self-reflective journal. If something went well, the practitioner can make a note of it so that they can repeat it. If it didn’t go well they can analyse why and plan how to change things next time. As I see it, all practitioners should be doing self-reflection. Their learning taught them how to work with the average patient. Experience shows them that patients are anything but average and everyone is very different. Self-reflection raises the standards of the practitioner and everyone gains from it: the practitioner, the patient, the clinic and the profession in general.

Stillness meditation – extract from Body Intelligence Meditation

Singing DragonJuly 18, 2014 1 Comment

You need reminding about stillness. Modern life has little interest in it. We have all become imprinted with an urge to activity that is both an overbearing work ethic and a neurotic need to be scintillated. Being still is very unfashionable and uncool. Once you glimpse your innate stillness, your body will respond powerfully to it and each time you open up to it, there will be a much stronger connection.

Sit and let your body become calm. Recognize the tremendous activity in your body. How can we ever get tired with so much energy and movement taking place within us? Let’s open up to the underlying stillness gradually. Start with your heart. The movement of the heart is constant. You couldn’t name a structure that is more caught up in motion. As you feel the movement of the heart, simply open up to the movement taking place within a field of stillness. Even if that doesn’t make any sense to your rational mind, open up to it. Do the same with the other big movement in your body, your breathing. Be with the felt sense of the ribcage and diaphragm moving, but again open up to the movement taking place in a field of stillness. The body will start automatically reorganizing when you do this. Notice the effect on your body. Lastly, notice the furious activity of your brain and thoughts, and open up to stillness as an intrinsic component of that. Again, you will feel something as you do it.

Stay with that for a while and then simply open up to your whole body being part of a field of stillness that embraces everything, so that all activity within you is part of the stillness. Now listen and feel as your system becomes modified by the stillness. Everything slows down. Breath, heart and mind all gear down and something sparks up in the body as a whole. It’s a dynamic energy that comes through your cells and fluids like a permeation from the field of stillness. The body just loves this process!

This meditation is taken from Body Intelligence Meditation: Finding presence through embodiment by Ged Sumner. The book is available to purchase from the Singing Dragon website.

How to maintain your root centre – by Rosemary Patten

Singing DragonMarch 28, 2014 1 Comment

Rosemary Patten, author of Japanese Holistic Face Massage and founder of Equinox Rose, a clinic specialising in energy healing, offers tips and meditation exercises to fix your prana from tip to toe by focusing on your root centre.

Why is maintaining the root centre important?

The root centre brings the flow of energy from crown to root and back from root to crown again. Without this instinctual energy the human race would not be here and we would not be able to understand the link we have with spirit. The root centre has given us the opportunity to progress. The rhythm of life is an ebb and flow of ideas and the willingness to confidently embrace the new with the knowledge that we can achieve and we can let go.

How does a balanced root centre make us feel?

We make decisions that are intuitive
We enjoy other’s company without fear at expressing our true feelings
We respect ourselves
We feel no envy or no greed for possessions
We relish other’s success
We can face people without judgement
We can achieve
We can help and inspire others
We listen to our bodies
We are aware of our sexuality and are not ashamed of our bodies

What can an imbalance of the root centre lead to?

Feelings of inadequacy
Being weak physically or emotionally
Blocking out the past unable to accept and move on
Being afraid of our own judgement
Restlessness and over talking
Running away from any kind of confrontation
A lack of co-operation by not allowing anyone to have their say
In relationships, aspirations can be too high with a tendency to criticise
A tendency to be over competitive
Losing the ability to be happy for other’s success

How can we maintain a healthy root centre?

Get out into the air and with each step realise the earth beneath and feel it!
Find activities your body will thank you for; walking in the fresh air, physical exercise, competitive sports, even gardening will help you to connect to your body and the earth
Recognise the early signs that tell you when your body is not balanced
Eat foods that are natural not processed. Meat and proteins when your mind is racing will help to keep the energy within the lower energy centres. However, overeating meat can cause you to be sluggish, therefore consider also soy tofu, pulses, nuts and dairy

An exercise to keep you feeling connected

Remember this simple exercise when you are busy and life gets fraught and you feel overwhelmed:

Sit upright in your chair and imagine a cord that runs down your spine into mother earth. When it reaches the level of the trees it forms roots. These roots intermingle with the trees and keep you connected to the earth. Bring the energy up through your cord.

Meditation 1

(Follow the above connection exercise)… Imagine all your worries, all those little things that annoy or niggles you… And then send those worries, excessive thoughts, down the cord and dispersing into the roots or fibre… Imagine yourself as strong as an oak tree…. Noble… Powerful…

Meditation 2

Sit in a comfortable position and put your hand comfortably on your lap.

a) Connect to the breath, breathe evenly and do not force the breath… Connect to the rhythm of the breath; remember to sit upright to allow the energy to pass up and down your spine. Release any tension you feel within your body. Scan your body with your mind’s eye. Are you holding any tension in your head?… Around the temples? Relax… Breathe into the tension and dissipate any tension. Scan your body, head, neck, shoulders, chest, upper back, lower back. Release by breathing into the area… Feel relaxed but upright.

b) Breathe down and place your root into the soil of mother earth… Remember to breathe not hold the breath too long…

c) Imagine a beam of white light some distance above and to one side of you and draw this light down your spine…

Hold the light at your root centre and visualise it turning a bright red colour. Feeling the red light within the perineum area…

Feel it grow… Feel strong… Powerful… Passionate and feel courage… Courage to achieve…

You have boundless energy…

You are connected with your root…

You understand the needs of your body and you give thanks

Meditation 3

(Follow the above connection exercise)

a) Feel your body expand and contract as you breath… Feel your legs, your feet… And the floor beneath you… Really be aware of the contact of your body to the chair… How solid, gravity keeps you there…

Bring your awareness to your feet and slightly increase the pressure to the floor without bringing tension into your legs… Grounding your body…Feel the current running down your legs… Continue to feel your body grounding…

b) Tune into your body… Feel the centre of gravity at the base of your spine… Focus on this point… As you focus on this point of gravity… Start to be aware of rest of your body… Think of the central channel your spine… Align the energy… Keep your back straight… Bring the energy over this central area…Your torso to your head, throat, chest, stomach, all over the central core of gravity… Keep breathing as you settle into the alignment…Imagine the cord running from the centre of your head down the central core… Deep into the earth… Try to imagine this core a deep red…

Take your time to feel all the energy centres aligning one over the other… Pulling you down into the earth… Anchoring your physical body with the subtle bodies…

c) Allow yourself to sway from the central core of gravity back and forth… Around from that central point… Feel the central point of gravity weighing you down… Holding you… As you move feel the tension lift… Draining away while your feet are pressing gently to the floor. Remember to breathe…

Now just relax into your chair for a few moments before you open your eyes.

Rosemary Patten is a master Reiki practitioner, aromatherapist, reflexologist, and author of Japanese Holistic Face Massage. She lives in Kent, UK.

Calm Children with Qigong Walking Meditation – by Lisa Spillane

Singing DragonNovember 26, 2013 3 Comments

During the holidays, when homes become busier and children are inclined to get over-excited, qigong can help you and the kids in your life to release stress and feel more balanced. The techniques are easy to learn and they can bring positivity to all kinds of daily activities. For instance: wrapping presents, decorating, eating and household chores can all be done with an awareness of how to use your posture, breath and intention to feel more relaxed and balanced in the present moment.

The walking meditation below is ideal to do with kids who need calming down. It’s a wonderful way to cultivate awareness of what’s happening in your inner and outer environments. When children practice it, they discover that it’s possible to find a calm place within themselves when they need to. They gain a deeper understanding of how the mind and body are interdependent and they learn ways to lovingly connect to the world around them.

Walking Meditation

This walking meditation focuses on the heart because in Traditional Chinese Medicine the heart is associated with impatience and over-excitement. With qigong meditation negative energy is released from the heart and then it’s recharged like a battery, with fresh, positive energy that generates calmness, joy and vitality. Don’t worry if you can’t fit all of my suggestions into your walk, even just doing the warm up will help to calm kids down.

Begin by stretching, shaking your arms and legs and tapping yourself all over. Then, gently swing your arms together, raising your heels as your arms go forward and bouncing down on them when they swing behind you. Smile and have fun with this. Breathe normally and imagine tension from your body going into the earth.

After a few minutes of that, start walking. Smile and breathe deeply through your nose, allowing your belly to rise on the inhale and using your tummy muscles to gently pull it in on the exhale. Keep your shoulders down and relaxed and let your arms gently sway. With each step be aware of your toes and heels touching the earth. As you inhale, imagine energy from the earth flowing up through your feet to your belly. Exhale tension. Then, turn your attention to the palms of your hands and feel the tingling of energy as it travels from there to your chest and then down to your belly. Keep smiling and walking at a comfortable pace.

Feel loving energy all around you from the beautiful things that you can see and feel.

What do you hear? What sounds are close? What sounds are far away? How does the air feel? What does it smell like?

When your mind wanders keep bringing it back to the present.

Next, stop and stand in a circle, put your hands on your lower stomach and have a good belly laugh. Having kids with you will be a major advantage at this point. In qigong laughter is called the “second heart” because the pumping action it causes in the diaphragm boosts the body’s blood flow. Laughing is a great way to let go of steam and release impatience from the heart. Imagine you’re exhaling impatience and tension as you make a “ha, ha, ha” sound.

For more Qigong meditation for children, see Lisa’s book Six Healing Sounds with Lisa and Ted.

Now, clasp your hands (with fingers interlocking) behind your back and stand up straight. Look forward and walk for a couple of minutes. This exercise is called Emperor Walks Heart Opens and it feels particularly good if you’ve been indulging in too much time sitting on the sofa. Breathe normally and imagine energy from heaven flowing through the top of your head and traveling all the way down your body.

After that, walk normally, continuing to be conscious of the lovely aspects of nature that you can see, feel, and hear. Smile, take a deep breath and inhale love and joy into your heart. Give it a loving rub and keep smiling. Think about your heart smiling and turning bright red (like Santa’s suit). On the exhale, make a long slow “haaw” (rhymes with “saw” sound) imagining impatience and tension leaving your heart as dark smoke and going back into the earth. Repeat this another two times.

Finally before you go back inside, stand still, place your hands in a prayer position, close your eyes, smile and breathe slowly and deeply into your belly. Thank your heart for the work that it does and for helping you to make wise decisions. Imagine love, joy and patience is radiating from it to the rest of your body. End by sending a blessing of love to someone.

Happy holidays!